'Components' of memory expressions of sound

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'Components' of memory expressions of sound102005 marquee11Athens Banner-HeraldGreenville, S.C. electronic musician, writer and promoter Wendy Owens has been working for more than a decade to bring awareness to electronic music. In the course of that time, she's booked a number of shows and worked with a number of artists - but the works of two, whose music will headline Saturday at Nu?i's Space in a show titled "Components: Xpressionism in Futurism," have special meaning to her.--> 'Components' of memory expressions of sound Electronic music showcase bridges communities and memorializes lost friend Story Photos Electronic music showcase

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By Julie Phillips | julie.phillips@onlineathens.com | Story updated at 12:24 PM on Thursday, October 20, 2005 Greenville, S.C. electronic musician, writer and promoter Wendy Owens has been working for more than a decade to bring awareness to electronic music. In the course of that time, she's booked a number of shows and worked with a number of artists - but the works of two, whose music will headline Saturday at Nu?i's Space in a show titled "Components: Xpressionism in Futurism," have special meaning to her.

For one, there's acclaimed Atlanta-based musician Richard Devine, whose creations range from remixing music by Aphex Twin to scoring commercials for Nike and Touchstone Pictures. Owens counts hooking up with Devine as a high point in her own career.

Of Devine's first live show in Greenville, Owens says, "He tore a hole in the proverbial spectrum of sound. Richard decimated frequencies, tweaked and obliterated sound waves. He made the concrete reverberate." She then adds, with total seriousness, "I danced like a robotic chicken in the blender on frappe."

Devine will return to Athens as part of "Components," a series based in Greenville that Owens started more than ten years ago. But in this incarnation, "Components" has a focused purpose - to bring recognition to the music of her friend and fellow musician Chris Clayton, who took his life six months ago.

"He was an amazingly talented person," Owens says, adding Clayton played "Components' " 10-year anniversary show in January and "rocked the house."

"I never had any idea that was my last show with him," she says sadly. "And as I was dealing with all this sadness I had, I decided I was going to try to establish his music and really get it out there and make an impression. I wanted his music to live on."

It's a sentiment well understood at Athens' Nuci's Space, which itself was founded in memory of Nu?i Phillips, an Athens musician who committed suicide in 1996. Offering affordable rehearsal space within a strong community of musicians and friends, Nu?i's Space also has referral services closely connected to local therapists, treatment programs and a support group for survivors of suicide.

Owens, who has played in Athens before, says she's so impressed with Nu?i's Space, her eventual goal is to create a similar space in Greenville, which she plans to call MARS - Music, Art, Recreation Space. It carries on her long-held mission - to bring musicians together in a shared space - and her new one: to raise awareness about suicide. "It's so important what they're accomplishing," she says of staff at Nu?i's.

In the meantime, with "Components: Xpressionism in Futurism," she's committed to getting Clayton's work out to electronic music fans. Saturday's show will include a host of artists, including Asheville N.C.'s Quetzatl and Auralox, Greenville's Brothers in Haze, CLIPPSCLIPPEDOUTCLIPPINGS and SCF, along with her own musical creations as Myst. The music will be accompanied by a visual gallery from Asheville-based Absent Productions.

Also taking the stage will be Athens musician Joseph Peterson of Manipulated Sound Source/Blue Satellite, who was Clayton's partner in MSS for a decade. Owens credits Peterson and Clayton as "responsible for inspiring 'Components.' Those guys are the reason I started doing what I'm doing," she says.

In her effort to bring the regional electronic community together, "Xpressionism in Futurism" is taking a mini-tour, traveling to Asheville and Athens following a show in Greenville.

"I hope to bridge the gap between Greenville and Asheville, especially," Owens says, "because there's really a strong community in both, and there are so many talented musicians out there, people who are making beats in their back yards and in their closets," she says. "My goal is to get their music out there."